Corn planter and hiller.



G. H. NOELL.

CORN PLANTEB AND HILLER.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 30, 1910.

977,535. K Patented Dec.6,1910.

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G. H. NOELL. 001m PLANTEB. AND HILLER.

APPLICATION FILED June, 1910.

Patented Dec. 6, 1910.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIC.

CHARLES H. NOELL, OF MONTVALE, VIRGINIA, ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-HALF TO G. M.ARRINGTON, OF MONTVALE, VIRGINIA.

CORN PLAN'IER AND I-IILLER.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES H. NOELL, a citizen of the United States,residing at Montvale R. F. D., county of Bedford, and State of Virginia,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Corn Planters andI-Iillers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to corn planters and hillers.

This invention has for its object the pro vision of a corn planter andhiller of novel construction, composed of comparatively few parts,inexpensive to manufacture, and having improved means for dropping thecorn or other seed, together wit-h the requisite amount of fertilizer,into the furrow opened by a shoe, thereafter forming the hill, smoothingthe ridge o-r crest of the hill and throwing aside stones orobstructions, and finally padding or tamping the hill at the placeswhere the corn and fertilizer have been dropped.

The invention also contemplates the provision of a machine which can beused to advantage to merely drop the corn or other seed without theaddition of the fertilizer, capable of adjustment to suit varyingconditions of use, have a novel feeder for the corn and fertilizer, anovel fender and coverer, a novel padder or tamper, novel means forthrowing the feeder and padder or tamper out of operation at will andother improved instriunentalities, all of which will appear more fullyhereinafter.

The present machine is particularly adapted for use as a walking dropperand hiller.

In the accompanying drawings :-Figure 1 is a perspective view of thecomplete machine, dotted lines representing the sprocket chain foroperating the different devices; Fig. 2, a longitudinal section thereof;Fig. 3, a detail plan view of the clutch controlling the sprocket chain;Fig. 4, a detail rear elevation of the padder or tamper; and F i 5, adetail rear view of the cut off for the feed slide.

The frame 1 is provided with a coupling or clevis 2 of any preferredconstruction, whereby the machine may be drawn along, and it has atraction wheel 3 whose shaft or axle l is journaled in suitable bearingson the frame and is rovided with a serrated clutch member 5 (Fig. 3)adapted to be engaged with a similar member carried by Specification ofLetters Patent.

Patented Dec. 6, 1910.

Application filed July 30, 1910. Serial No. 574,716.

the sleeve 6 of a sprocket wheel 7 which is slidable on'the end of shaft4, the latter being received in a guard or fender 8. A coil spring 9surrounding the shaft 4 tends to hold the faces of the clutch inengagement so that the sprocket wheel 7 is normally turned on themovement of the machine, but the sleeve 6 is provided with an annulargroove receiving the fork of a bell crank lever 10 pivoted to a bracket11 on frame 1 and controlled by a rod 12 and a handle 13, the latterbeing carried by the handles 14: of the machine in convenient positionto be readily grasped by the person using the machine. The mechanismdescribed controls the operation of the feed slide and the padder ortamper as will presently appear.

There is a shoe or conducting tube 15 provided with a point or shovel 16and suitably bolted to the frame 1 at 17. Removably secured by bracketsor angle irons 18 to frame 1, is the hopper 19 which has a hinged cover20 and is provided with a fertilizer compartment 21 and a seedcompartment 22 separated by a suitable partition 23. EX- tending throughthe base of the hopper is a fertilizer dropping aperture 24 and a seeddropping aperture 25.

The feed slide 26 is provided with a notch 27 and with an aperture 28,the former being adapted to receive a measured quantity of thefertilizer and to drop it through the opening 24 at the same time thatthe aperture 28 receives a seed and drops it through the aperture 25 sothat the seed and the fertilizer simultaneously fall into the shoe 15and both pass out of the mouth 29 at the lower end thereof just back ofthe point or shovel 16.

There is provided in the bottom of the compartment 21 a member 30 havingan aperture 31 through which the fertilizer passes to the feed slide andthe latter carries an agitator 32 which prevents clogging of thefertilizer and insures proper feed thereof.

Referring to Figs. 2 and 5, there is shown a cut off in the seed chamberwhich consists of a casting 33 secured to the partition 23 by suitablefastenings passing through the openings 34:, said casting having a slotin its rear facein which is a slide 35 which is normally urgeddownwardly by a spring 36. The lower end of the cast-ing 33 is providedwith a notch 37. Ordinarily the seed or kernel of corn dropping into theaperture 28 is of such size that it will pass underneath the slide 35which allows but one kernel of corn to pass into said aperture, but ifan unusally large kernel should be received in the opening, the slide 35will yield, thereupon preventing splitting of the kernel and permittingthe kernel to pass into the aperture 28 from which it will finallydischarge through the aperture 25. The notch 37 permits this action.

Journaled in suitable bearings 38 on frame 1 is a crank shaft 39 whichis connected by a pitman 40 to the slide 26 and is provided wit-h asprocket wheel 41 adapted to engage chain 42, shown by dotted lines, andto thereby be driven by the sprocket wheel '7. The size of thesesprocket wheels in proportion to the size of wheel 3 is such that thefeed of the fertilizer and corn will be timed to deposit them at thedesired intervals in the furrow.

Vertically adjustable in straining clamp loops or brackets 43 on thesides of the frame 1 are the standards 44 of the hillers 45 which hillthe furrow previously formed by the point 16. The bolts which hold theclamp bracket 43 can be readily loosened and permit the standards 44 tobe raised or lowered as may be required, and on tightening the bolts,the standards are clamped in position.

Immediately to the rear of the hillers is the combined coverer andfender 46 whose front 47 is of cowcatcher type and whose under surfaceis hollowed out at 48. This device is provided with a two-armed standardor hanger 49, the members of which are held by clamp brackets or straps50 secured by bolts. On loosening the bolts, the standards can beadjusted vertically and reclamped. The coverer and fender smoothes oithe top of the hill and at the same time casts aside any stones or otherobstructions.

Rearward of the coverer and fender and in line therewith is a padder ortamper composed of a foot 51, a stem 52 slidable loosely through anaperture 53 in a cross piece 54 (Fig. 4) on the frame 1 and provided atits upper end with a reduced part 55 which passes loosely through a loop56 on a crank 57 which has its end parts journaled in bearings 58 onframe 1. A coil spring 59 surrounds the reduced part 55 between thecrank and the shoulder on stem 52, and a pin or the like 60, limits theloose motion of the padder or tamper. The shaft of the crank has asprocket wheel. 61 around which passes the sprocket chain 42. Thesprocket wheel 61 is of such size that the tamper or padder isperiodically brought down upon the hill at the point where the corn andfertilizer have been deposited so as to suitably compact the hill atthose points. and the spring 59 causes this action to be made an l l l 11 elastic as well as a yielding one, thus compacting the soil in thebest manner possible and also permitting the padder or tamper to yieldif it strikes a stone or other hard substance.

I preferably provide an idler sprocket 62 adjustably carried by abracket 63 (Fig. 1), whereby the tension of the sprocket cha1n 42 may beregulated. The handles 14 are preferably pivoted at their forward endsand are adjustably supported by standards or brackets so that they maybe arranged to suit the height of the person using the machine.

It will be understood that my machine while principally adapted for thedropping of corn, may be used with other seeds, the seed slides beingchanged according to circumstances and, if desired, the sprocket wheelscould be changed to regulate the action according to circumstances;also, that While the machine is designed to simultaneously dropfertilizer with the seed, the fertilizer may be omitted and the deviceused simply as a seed drill. Furthermore, at any time the handle 13 isoperated, the operation of the seed slide and the padder will cease andthus when turning at the end of the furrow, I obviate the waste whichwould otherwise ensue, and the depositing of the seeds in a bunch. Asthe machine advances the point 16 opens the furrow and the seed, with orwithout the fertilizer, according to requirements, is dropped into thefurrow which is afterward billed by the shovels 45 to be subsequentlycovered by the coverer and thereafter tamped by the foot 51 at theplaces where the seeds are deposited. The foot 51 is used only when thefertilizer is dropped and the same is true of the fender 46. Both thepadder and fender are removed when the fertilizer is not dropped and themachine is only used as a corn planter or seeder.

Various modifications might be resorted to in carrying out the inventionwithout departing from the spirit and scope thereof.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a planter and hiller, the combination with a drill and a feeder,of hillers, a coverer and fender, and a periodically acting tamper.

2. In a planter and hiller, the combination with a drill, of fertilizerand seed dropping means adapted to simultaneously drop the seed andfertilizer in the furrow, hillers arranged to travel on opposite sidesof the furrow to hill the same, a combined coverer and fender arrangedto act after the hillers, and a periodically acting tamper arranged totamp the places where the seed and fertilizer have been dropped.

3. In a planter and hiller, the combination of a drill, a feeder,hillers, a movable tamper, a traction wheel, means for operating thefeeder and tamper from the traction wheel, and means for controlling theoperation of said feeder and tamper.

4. In a planter and hiller, the combination with a frame, of a tractionwheel, a driving wheel having a clutch connectlon with the tractionwheel, a hand-operated device for controlling said clutch connection, afeeder, a wheel for driving said feeder, a drill. a tamper, a wheel foroperating the tamper, and an operative connection between the wheelsaforesaid, whereby the feeder and tamper are driven, said clutchcontrolling 15 CHARLES H. NOELL.

Witnesses:

J. M. DANIEL, S. S. LAMBETH, Jr.

